Heh. So this is my boss, Duchesne. Wait. Even better. This is my BOSS' boss. He could not resist the lure of the hula hoops at my desk today (*spoiler alert* they are featured in an upcoming issue of vita.mn, which is why they were at my desk). I sorta teased him about giving it a try, and he was totally game! Daily photo? CHECK.I know that technically this photo is a little boring. But if you ever worked with this guy, the image is priceless. Plus, it's fitting to have him in the blog because he gave me some very good news today. I can't give you any spoilers on that, so be patient my friends. But just know that he has my back, and that makes me feel pretty lucky.

Tonight was the *very* sold out Robyn show at the Fine Line. Robyn has been a guilty pleasure for a few years now, but the deal was really sealed a few weeks ago when she appeared on Gossip Girl. Bet I caught you off guard with that one, eh? Yes. Gossip Girl is another guilty pleasure of mine. Along with Vampire Diaries, while we're putting all of the embarrassing stuff on the table. Inside, I really am a 13-year-old girl, so sue me. You can see the full photo set over here. It was an *amazing* show... especially when she covered Prince.

Look at that snow! We woke up to a winter wonderland this morning. Behind us is a downed tree in our neighbor's yard -- the snow was so wet and heavy that several large branches were breaking on our block (and you could hear the trees cracking!). It's supposed to keep snowing tonight and all day tomorrow as well. I took this chance to get our whole family together for a holiday card photo.I think I've told you guys how last year we did a holiday card, and we had no photos of any of us together. Sure I had great photos of everyone on their own, but we made a resolution to get more "group" shots this year. I haven't been that good at it, but I wanted to be sure to get one of us in the first real snowfall. I kinda dragged Jamie outta bed for this one, so I can't even guarantee that everyone's teeth are brushed. But who's keeping score, right?We spent the rest of the day making an awesome stew, warming our feet by the fire and catching up on TV. A perfect Saturday.

What a view, eh? Tonight I attended a SXSW mixer at the top of the IDS tower, and it was my first time up there. We arrived right around sunset, and man, was it gorgeous. I love the orange of the sunset and the way the freeways are all lit up. It's supposed to snow tomorrow, and I can only imagine how different the view will be then.

Tonight was Dawes and Peter Wolf Crier at First Avenue. Dawes' music is a little too sentimental for my tastes (through the headphones), but live? They blow me away. They are so genuine and earnest -- it's kindof adorable. Tonight there were singalongs, and smiles, and both bands playing on the same song (like above with Taylor joining Peter on stage). And? There was that one time when the lead singer of Dawes dedicated a new song to MEREDITH WESTIN and wished her luck on her big move to Barcelona tomorrow, you know, in front of the packed First Avenue. So that was fun and unexpected. You can see more shots from the show over here.After the show, we all headed over to the Depot to extend the night as long as we could before our dear lady was yawning uncontrollably and had to leave for the night. She walked around giving everyone at the table long hugs and whispering goodbyes in their ears. We all tried hard to keep it light and humorous, and when she left we all started clapping, and then the whole bar was clapping and whooping and hollering and whistling. Oh, and did I mention that the bands were back at the bar as well? Cheering and pumping their fists as she left for Europe? Quite a sendoff, I'd say.So with that? Good luck, lady. We're all jealous, and we can't wait to hear about all of your Spanish adventures. Keep us updated and ask us for care packages if you're ever homesick. And keep your couch free for when we wanna come and visit, mmmkay?

Tonight was Meredith's going away party. This was my third going away party since October -- all for very dear friends of mine. I'm going to try not to dwell on the sucktastic nature of saying goodbye to so many close friends, but rather on the good fortune for them. And the fact that clearly I befriend very creative and independent souls who have wonderful life experiences ahead of them. Yes. I'm just gonna keep telling myself that.Anyway, back to the photo. Ms. Meredith, on the right (obviously) is here with our buddy Eric (who is not leaving! who, in fact, is BREEDING! very exciting). Tonight was her going away party at the 501 bar before she moves to Barcelona where she will teach English to throngs of hot Spanish men (here's hoping). The good news is that she is such a special person that like 100 people came to say goodbye. The bad part is that I couldn't just stuff her into the bathroom and hog her to myself all night (lord knows I tried).But alas, her very last night in town is tomorrow night at First Ave where we'll both be shooting the Dawes concert. Yes! A concert! My blog might gain a *little* excitement! That is if I can remember how to shoot a show -- it seems like it has been forever. But back to Meredith, I'm suuuuuure we'll have time for proper goodbye's tomorrow night at the club with the band and the 1,300 other people there. Shouldn't be a problem at all. Sigh.Damn, I'm gonna miss this lady.

This afternoon a few of us escaped the office for just a bit to head down to the river and take some photos. It was waaaaay too nice to be stuck in the cubicle farm today. Sixty seven in November in Minnesota? Yeah, I'll take it.Margaret is borrowing this Hasselblad camera from a friend, and we were oogling it a little today. I had just shot a photo of the river with my normal DSLR, and I turned around to see her shoes framed up perfectly in her Hasselblad viewfinder - score! For the non-photographer types, this camera works by holding it down by your hips, and looking down into the viewfinder while aiming the camera straight ahead -- so it's a much different type of shooting than the standard camera (which is why her shoes are what's in the frame pointing at me).